Chapter Summaries

After the other sea race powers departed, Ao Guang asked Ye Lin to help him obtain the Seven-Colored Lotus, but Ye Lin withheld any promise because he knew too little about the task. Ye Lin suspected Ao Guang’s request was more complicated than he had admitted, and planned to study the sword art before speaking with him again.

• The sea race experts dispersed after the three great kings left, leaving Ao Ping and Ao Guang behind.
• Ao Ping confronted Ao Guang about his plan and urged him to stop pursuing the Seven-Colored Lotus to restore a dead woman’s Primordial Spirit.
• Ao Guang asked Ye Lin to help him with his matter, and Ye Lin thanked him without agreeing to cooperate.
• Ye Lin prepared to leave and study the sword art Ao Guang had given him before discussing the request further.
• Ye Lin doubted Ao Guang’s claim that his sea race identity kept him from going on land, and suspected the lotus was either difficult to locate or tied to an undisclosed complication.

Ye Lin and the survivors left the Nine Heavens Mystic Realm, which now belonged to the sea clan, and set out to return to the Crimson Wasteland. As they reflected on their easy journey, Wang Xiaoyun reminded Zhang Wusheng that far greater challenges still lay ahead.

• Ye Lin led the survivors out of the secret realm and accepted that the Nine Heavens Mystic Realm belonged to the sea clan, though he vowed to return if he grew strong enough.
• The group left the island and headed toward the Crimson Wasteland, while Xu Feng said Yun Xuan's death left no younger Crimson Wasteland expert able to stop them.
• Zhang Wusheng wondered why their journey through the Second Region had been so smooth.
• Wang Xiaoyun reminded Zhang Wusheng that they had only reached a beginner's village and asked whether he could defeat Yun Xuan at his peak.
• Zhang Wusheng admitted he was no match for Yun Xuan and reconsidered the stronger opponents they might face beyond the Four Seas.

Ye Lin and his companions traveled over the sea, reflecting on how vulnerable they still were despite their progress. They reached the Crimson Wasteland as the chapter ended.

• Wang Xiaoyun reminded Zhang Wusheng that their journey had been dangerous and that they had only gained a foothold in the most basic newbie village.
• Zhang Wusheng recovered from his earlier blow, and Wang Xiaoyun judged that he had a strong mentality.
• Ye Lin and his companions traveled across the sea while the ordinary sea race cultivators below avoided confronting them.
• The narration described four groups of cultivators navigating the great era and placed Ye Lin and his companions among its trendsetting successors.
• Ye Lin and his companions arrived at the Crimson Wasteland.

Ye Lin and his companions reached the Crimson Wasteland, where the Sea Race and the land-dwellers faced off. After Zhang Wusheng killed a Sea Race cultivator who insulted them, Ye Lin entered the region and received a private invitation from a senior in Sea-Suppressing City.

• A black bear demanded to know where the Crimson Wasteland's prodigies were, and Zhang Wusheng killed him for his disrespect.
• Ye Lin and his companions entered the Crimson Wasteland while the Sea Race mocked the land-dwellers for staying silent.
• Ye Lin and his group crossed the void to Sea-Suppressing City, where an unseen senior invited Ye Lin to speak.
• Ye Lin accepted the invitation, and a bridge appeared from Sea-Suppressing City beneath his feet.

Ye Lin met a mysterious old man, who confirmed Yun Xuan had died by Ye Lin’s hand and explained the consequences for the Eight Wastelands’ sword dao. The old man asked Ye Lin to hold back the approaching sea clan, but left him considering the stakes of the great era.

• Ye Lin entered Sea-Suppressing City alone and met a white-bearded old man in a void beyond its walls.
• The old man asked whether Yun Xuan had fallen by Ye Lin’s hand, and Ye Lin admitted that he had killed him.
• The old man said Yun Xuan’s death was fated and that Ye Lin now controlled half the Eight Wastelands’ sword-dao fortune.
• The old man explained that the sea clan was advancing and asked Ye Lin to hold it back while reinforcements were delayed and elders could not intervene.
• Ye Lin began to refuse, but the old man asked what was being contested in the struggle of the great era.

Ye Lin learned that helping the Crimson Wasteland prodigies resist the sea race could earn him recognition and help him gain a foothold in the Second Region. Though the old man warned that the opportunity would come only once, Ye Lin returned to Sea-Suppressing City intending to avoid the conflict, where Gu Qingzhi and the others questioned him about his meeting.

• The old man explained that Ye Lin’s inherited sword-dao luck had helped him gain a foothold, but his friends still lacked recognition, and resisting the sea race could change their standing.
• Ye Lin told the old man he would consider the proposal, then was sent into Sea-Suppressing City.
• Ye Lin planned to leave the city and stay out of the conflict between the Eight Wastelands and the sea race.
• Gu Qingzhi called Ye Lin into Know-All’s teahouse, where the group asked where he had gone.
• Gu Qingzhi guessed that the eighth-level Golden Immortal guarding Sea-Suppressing City had summoned Ye Lin to speak with him.

Know-All warned Ye Lin that the elder who summoned him intended to make him take the blame for the sea clan invasion and die defending Sea-Suppressing City. He revealed that Ye Lin was trapped in the city, then left Ye Lin wondering why he had shared this information.

• Know-All deduced that the elder had summoned Ye Lin to fight the sea clan and explained how Yun Xuan’s death had made the elder vulnerable to blame.
• Know-All warned that the elder would claim credit if Ye Lin won and blame him if he died, while Ye Lin and his companions would face certain death.
• Gu Qingzhi worried that the elder might overhear them, and Know-All said he had set up an array to hide their conversation.
• Know-All told Ye Lin that entering Sea-Suppressing City had trapped him there because the city belonged to the elder and was forbidden to the Heavenly Dao.
• Ye Lin questioned why Know-All was warning them.

Know-All offered to lead Ye Lin and the others out, demanding ten million Law Source Stones. After Ye Lin confirmed that escape was impossible, San Zang paid for Know-All to explain his method.

• Know-All told Ye Lin that an eighth-layer Golden Immortal blocked their escape and offered to lead them out for a price.
• Ye Lin sent an external incarnation toward the city gate, but an unseen force erased it.
• Ye Lin asked Know-All for the price, and Know-All demanded ten million Law Source Stones.
• Zhang Wusheng threatened Know-All, but Know-All challenged him to kill him and find another way out.
• San Zang presented Know-All with a Spatial Ring and asked him to explain his method.

Know-All led the group through a hidden passage as an old man arrived too late to find them. The old man blamed people from the Third Region for Yun Xuan’s death and ordered the story spread across the Eight Wastelands.

• Know-All took the Spatial Ring, then led the group through a secret passage after warning them that the old man had arrived.
• The old man reached the teahouse and found it empty, with the tea still warm.
• The old man searched Sea-Suppressing City with his divine sense but failed to find the group, then destroyed the teahouse in anger.
• The old man told his followers to spread the claim that vermin from the Third Region had killed Yun Xuan and stirred the East Sea clans toward invading Crimson Province.
• The young men expressed disbelief at the claim, then set off to complete their mission.

Know-All led Gu Qingzhi, Bai Xiaoyan, and the others through a hidden passage out of Sea-Suppressing City, losing his teahouse and foothold along the way. The group emerged in a gorge in Green Prefecture, and after Know-All left, Ye Lin realized they had forgotten to ask him for a map.

• Know-All explained that the group was only halfway through the passage and that his teahouse and Sea-Suppressing City foothold had been lost.
• The group continued through the passage for several more quarters of an hour and reached its exit.
• Know-All opened the wall, and the group emerged into a vast gorge in Green Prefecture.
• Know-All said goodbye and left the group, while Zhang Wusheng restrained his anger and watched him go.
• Ye Lin realized that they had forgotten to ask Know-All for a map.

After locating themselves in Moonlight Valley with a map, Ye Lin and his companions decided to avoid the coming conflict and enter seclusion in the Myriad Demon Wasteland. Shangguan Wanyu also saw the demon-filled region as a chance to temper her cultivation.

• Gu Qingzhi revealed the map they had bought from Know-All for three hundred thousand Supreme Immortal Stones.
• Gu Qingzhi located their position in Moonlight Valley, ten thousand li north of Sea-Suppressing City.
• Li Xiaoyao proposed finding a place to enter seclusion and consolidate their gains.
• Ye Lin agreed that they should lie low because the Four Kings of the Four Seas planned to lead the sea clans into the Crimson Wasteland.
• Gu Qingzhi chose the Myriad Demon Wasteland as a remote place to enter seclusion, and Shangguan Wanyu welcomed the chance to train among its demons.

Gu Qingzhi led the group to the Myriad Demon Wasteland to begin one hundred years of closed-door cultivation, and Ye Lin chose the lifeless desert as their retreat. After Luo Yao became surrounded by blue light and fell asleep, Ye Lin took her while Shangguan Wanyu went to cultivate.

• Gu Qingzhi decided that the group would cultivate in seclusion in the Myriad Demon Wasteland for one hundred years.
• The group flew from Sea-Suppressing City to the wasteland and found a vast, lifeless desert.
• Ye Lin explored the desert with his divine sense, chose a secluded place to stay, and the others went to find their own cultivation spots.
• Luo Yao yawned, began glowing with blue light, and fell asleep in Shangguan Wanyu's arms.
• Ye Lin took Luo Yao from Shangguan Wanyu and told her to begin cultivating in seclusion.

Ye Lin learned that Luo Yao only needed quiet rest, then settled her in a hidden underground refuge. He examined a sword visualization diagram from the Trial Heavenly Ladder and realized it could deepen his understanding of the Sword Dao.

• Ye Lin asked the Heaven-Devouring Demon Jar about Luo Yao, and it said she was merely sleepy and needed rest while withholding her origins.
• Ye Lin opened a sinkhole in the desert, carried Luo Yao underground, and left her to sleep in a quiet corner.
• Ye Lin took out the scroll he had obtained from the Trial Heavenly Ladder and identified it as a visualization diagram.
• Ye Lin determined that the diagram contained the true intent of the Sword Dao and could simplify the comprehension of its laws.

Ye Lin examined the sword technique Ao Guang gave him and discovered it described a sword-nurturing art whose essential instructions were missing. He set aside the temptation to seek the rest for a hundred years and began comprehending the sword diagram, which soon changed before his eyes.

• Ye Lin recognized that the sword diagram held dense Sword Dao intent and could greatly improve his understanding of Sword Dao laws.
• Ye Lin studied Ao Guang's Jade Talisman and learned that its technique used heaven and earth and all creation to nurture a ferocious sword, while Ao Guang kept the method itself.
• Ye Lin decided to focus on the sword diagram and postpone seeking Ao Guang for the technique's remaining content until a hundred years later.
• Ye Lin endured the diagram's pain on his eyes, then found the pain fading and the painting changing in his perception.

Ye Lin comprehended the Sword Dao through the sword diagram while Shangguan Wanyu discovered a buried opportunity in the desert. She plunged into the ruins and endured the blackish-purple gas as her cultivation rapidly increased.

• Ye Lin entered deep focus and absorbed sword intent and sword laws from the diagram, advancing his Sword Dao comprehension.
• Shangguan Wanyu walked alone through the desert, believing her fortune lay beneath the ground.
• Shangguan Wanyu struck the flat ground, exposing ruins and blackish-purple gas, then leaped into the pit.
• The gas invaded Shangguan Wanyu’s body and caused intense pain as she guarded her mind and let her cultivation rise.

Shangguan Wanyu explored a strange underground space and discovered countless demons and fiends imprisoned around a colossal stone pillar. As she retreated, the creatures began to awaken.

• Shangguan Wanyu followed a purple-lit passage and found a stream of purple water.
• Shangguan Wanyu explored the underground space for half an hour and discovered countless demons and fiends gathered around a massive stone pillar.
• Shangguan Wanyu realized a Golden Immortal must have imprisoned the demons and fiends because they could not be destroyed, and decided to retreat.
• The demons and fiends on the ground, walls, and pillar began opening their eyes as Shangguan Wanyu backed away.

Shangguan Wanyu was overwhelmed by a vast horde of demons while trying to flee, and her attacks passed harmlessly through them. As demons invaded her body and drained her immortal power, she lost consciousness while repeating a warning to guard her mind.

• Shangguan Wanyu saw countless demons surge toward her and fled back the way she had come.
• Shangguan Wanyu realized the demons were too fast to outrun and struck them with Heaven Severance, but her palm passed through them without harm.
• A demon entered Shangguan Wanyu’s body, and more demons followed as she tried to suppress them with her immortal power.
• Shangguan Wanyu’s body turned blackish-purple as the demons drained her strength and gnawed at her Primordial Spirit.
• Shangguan Wanyu repeatedly urged herself to guard her mind, but she eventually shut her eyes while the demons continued invading her body.

After surviving a demonic assault, Shangguan Wanyu discovered that she had advanced to the fifth level of the Golden Immortal Realm. Meanwhile, Ye Lin continued cultivating in seclusion and planned to study the Grass-Character Sword Art during the ten years remaining.

• Shangguan Wanyu woke after the demons vanished and found that her injuries had healed.
• Shangguan Wanyu discovered that her cultivation had risen from the third to the fifth level of the Golden Immortal Realm, unaware she had been unconscious for ninety years.
• Ye Lin opened his eyes after studying the visualization diagram and found his Sword Dao comprehension had reached the level of a sixth-level Golden Immortal.
• Ye Lin chose to strengthen his foundation before advancing and decided to study the Grass-Character Sword Art for the remaining ten years.

Ye Lin received Ao Guang’s summons and went to Sea-Suppressing City to decide whether to search for the Seven-Colored Lotus. He accepted Ao Guang’s offer and learned he had one hundred years to find the lotus in the Northern Frontier.

• Ye Lin’s Jade Talisman warmed, displayed a message from Ao Guang to meet in Sea-Suppressing City, and crumbled to ash.
• Ye Lin left the sleeping Luo Yao in the Heaven-Devouring Demon Jar’s care and traveled to Sea-Suppressing City.
• Ao Guang and Ao Ping met Ye Lin above the city, and Ao Guang asked him once more to make the deal.
• Ao Guang promised Ye Lin friendship with him and the Four Seas Dragon Clan, along with the agreed benefits even if Ye Lin failed.
• Ye Lin accepted the search, and Ao Guang said the Seven-Colored Lotus was somewhere in the Northern Frontier and gave him one hundred years to find it.

Ye Lin accepted a Jade Talisman from Ao Guang, who trusted him to search for the Seven-Colored Lotus. Ao Guang revealed that Ye Lin’s Fate Rank matched the Ancient Human Emperor’s, leaving Ao Ping stunned and wary.

• Ao Guang gave Ye Lin a Jade Talisman containing a top-grade Boundless-tier sword art and asked him to send word if he found the Seven-Colored Lotus.
• Ao Ping told Ye Lin he would not hinder him, provided Ye Lin did not block the sea clan’s path.
• Ao Ping asked Ao Guang why he trusted Ye Lin so completely, and Ao Guang explained that he could see Ye Lin’s extraordinary Fortune Path.
• Ao Guang said that only the Ancient Human Emperor had possessed a Fate Rank like Ye Lin’s.
• Ao Ping accepted Ao Guang’s claim aloud, though he remained unconvinced and committed Ye Lin’s name to memory.